Graduating high school was a big deal for LeBron James … and for his mother, Gloria, too. She had him at 16 and raised him as a single mom, so seeing him hit that milestone had to be huge for her.
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Gloria never really pushed LeBron toward the NBA, wanting him to graduate alongside the rest of his class. By his senior year, seeing how well he was doing, she even took out a $50,000 loan to gift him a Hummer. But as flashy as it was, that ride had a few surprises of its own.
In a throwback video documentary by ESPN, LeBron admits he loved the ride, so much that he could hardly part with it for anything. Of course, there was one person who could change that, his mom. But unless she wanted him to, he had no intention of giving it up.
All things considered, it was an amazing gift for a soon-to-be 18-year-old LeBron. That Hummer came loaded with a music system, a DVD player, a TV, and video games for James and his friends. In the throwback video, LeBron is seen vibing to the tunes, while talking about just how much he loved the ride.
“I love this thing, man. Ain’t nothing I would trade in the world for this. Well, my mama. I would trade it for my mama. But anything else, I am going to keep it,” LeBron said. He also added that anyone wanting to invest in that vehicle should know that the gas mileage was wild.
“Take you $40 to fill this thing up, man. Be killing me,” he shared. Unfortunately, despite loving the gift from his mother, LeBron would not be able to keep it for long. Well, it was either that or have his amateur status revoked before joining the NBA.
LeBron’s trouble with OHSAA and the Hummer
The Ohio School Athletic Association, or OHSAA, doesn’t allow amateur athletes to receive gifts above a certain value. And the $50,000 his mom took out exceeded OHSAA regulations by $49,900!
However, it was later determined that James had not violated the rules after his mother, Gloria, effectively proved that she had indeed purchased the vehicle with her own money.
Now, these were some wild days. In one instance, LeBron was actually barred from school after accepting throwback jerseys! But that’s just how insane the hype was around him at 18 years of age. So much so that his games were being broadcast on ESPN at the time. No other high school teenage athlete in America has since received so much hype.
In hindsight, one can say it was all worth it, considering James is now seen as one of the, if not the, greatest basketball players of all time.
